You're Beautiful
by Lil Enchantress
Summary: [songfic, AU] Kankuro has a pretty good life so far... well he thought it was until something better came along. Something he didn't know he'd been missing. KankuroTenten


_Disclaimer: I do not own anything. Barely the room I live in… Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and the song "You're Beautiful" is owned by James Blunt._

A/N: A Kankuro/Tenten for my dear friend ImMoRtAlFrEnD704. A, um… VERY late Christmas present. I'm very sorry. This songfic is AU. Kankuro's 19, Tenten 18, other people's ages accordingly. Enjoy. :)

**"You're Beautiful"**

_My life is brilliant._

Kankuro was ecstatic. Today was the day he was moving out of his tiny house and away from his twisted family. Don't get him wrong, he loved his brother and sister, but their father was a complete waste. Temari was lucky that she had already moved out and in with her boyfriend, Shikamaru.

_My life is brilliant.  
My love is pure._

Kankuro had to almost laugh at that because the thought of his tough sister, the one that always beat him up when they were kids, being in love. She'd said it herself to him before she moved out. He smiled, wishing there was a possibility that he might get to feel this feeling someday. To be so happy over one person…

After packing the rest of his stuff, Kankuro walked out the door with a determined attitude. He didn't say good-bye to his father. There was no need. Gaara, his younger sibling, was at his friend Naruto's for the first time, so he could always call him later. Picking up his few bags (as most of his stuff was already at his new apartment… this was just the final leaving), Kankuro left without regrets. He was headed toward the subway. As of yet, he didn't have a car for transportation, so he'd be using public use instead.

On the way to the station, Kankuro saw a peculiar person through the crowd. Her hair was done up in buns on each side of her head. Weird as it was… he thought she was the most beautiful person he'd ever seen. She had deep, dark brown hair and shining, chocolate eyes that he could see from however far away he was. She was laughing and her face changed just so much that it wasn't annoying, but enchanting instead.

_I saw an angel.  
Of that I'm sure._

Walking still, he couldn't get her image out of his head. What a day to see this wonderful girl when he was in a hurry to meet the subway's schedule. Kankuro wished he could have run past everyone to say hi, meet her, or something… but fate wasn't so kind today. He looked back to where he saw her, but she'd already gotten lost in the crowd.

It was surprising what he found once he arrived at the station though. There she was again; standing happily next to a guy he didn't know. As he got on the train, he stood across the narrow walk way where she was. She turned, and noticed him. He could tell she was looking at him for moment as if she thought she knew him from somewhere before, but instead she smiled when she realized she must have been staring. Kankuro could feel this small connection between them. So minuscule, but yet… it was definitely there. Attracting them together with an invisible line.

_She smiled at me on the subway.  
She was with another man.  
But I won't lose no sleep on that,  
'Cause I've got a plan._

The guy she was with wondered Kankuro. The guy with long, dark brown hair, tied together and the very tips of his locks seemed cold and distant toward the girl. Surely they weren't in a relationship. Possibly they were just friends. There was no way a girl as beautiful as the one across from him would put up with someone as stiff as him. Kankuro conjured thoughts, plans, to overwhelm this girl with affection; surely a way to bring her attention to him instead. Of course… there was still the possibility that this guy was just a friend. But gosh… she was so beautiful…

_You're beautiful. You're beautiful.  
You're beautiful, it's true.  
I saw your face in a crowded place,  
And I don't know what to do,  
'Cause I'll never be with you._

Okay. For now, Kankuro was going to think of the guy as her boyfriend. Maybe it made him more depressed, but it was rational thinking. So maybe it wasn't going to work, trying to make her fawn over him. He wouldn't be with her. This fact… he couldn't accept. He needed her. One moment was all it took, a glance, a look… to feel the feeling he'd wondered he would ever feel. But it wasn't complete. It wouldn't ever be. Not unless he did something, talked to her, something. Kankuro looked over to where the girl was again, finally deciding to strike up a conversation despite her 'boyfriend' standing there beside her, but found she wasn't there. She'd gotten off at the last stop…

It was a good week or two later, Kankuro had been living on his own and had almost forgotten about the dark haired beauty. But not quite. She was still there, in his mind; haunting him for not being courageous enough to even say hi to her at that time. He'd seen a dinner roll last week and almost thought it was the girl's hair, tied up in its weird fashion. He'd sighed afterwards, realizing how ridiculous that really was. Mistaking a bread roll for a beautiful girl's hair…

Deciding he needed some time to get her completely out of his head, Kankuro went out to get a pack of smokes. He didn't like smoking, but he'd done it when he was in high school, proving to be a hard habit to quit. He didn't like admitting his reputation from high school now that he'd changed to become an independent adult, but the past was still the past. Nothing he could change. And he could really go for something that would take his mind off of _her_.

Before long, Kankuro found himself at a bar. His feet had just taken him there automatically. Lit cigarette in hand, he stood in the back against a wall. There was a band playing and lots of people, drunk or not, were dancing in the middle. There was one though… that stood out more than the rest. A girl that, by chance, looked in his direction, two buns of hair on either side of her head.

_Yeah, she caught my eye,  
As we walked on by.  
She could see from my face that I was,  
Flying high, _

The cigarette was getting to him. He never reacted well to the smoke in his eyes, but he was sure that was the same girl he'd seen on the subway that day. And she was staring at him again, as if checking to see if she'd met him somewhere before. That unspoken feeling that kept attracting them together… she must feel it too. And as if she'd read his mind, she walked over to him, pushing past the crowd on her way. He was just about to do that himself, and was frankly quite surprised that she beat him to it. When she arrived beside him, she smiled. His heart took off into the clouds.

"Hey," she said, casually as if they'd already met and was just seeing him around like one of her old buddies.

"Hi," Kankuro managed to get out as he told himself to calm down or he'd blush. How embarrassing would that be?

"Y'know," the girl said, putting her right pointer finger on her chin as if thinking about something before continuing. "I'm pretty sure I've seen you around here somewhere before."

Kankuro looked at her for a moment, dabbing some of the butt of his cigarette into a nearby garbage can (a/n: eh.. you know.. whatever those ones for cigarettes is called…). "Once."

She looked perplexed for a second but then asked, "Oh, really?"

"Yeah," He confirmed. "We rode the same subway a couple weeks ago."

"Hm," she thought. "Yeah, I think I remember seeing someone like you then. So it _was_ you?"

"Yeah."

"You said once. How do you know that we haven't walked by each other before and we just didn't notice?" She smirked at him, waiting for him to find some kind of reply. Clearly she didn't believe he could prove himself to just _know_ that they hadn't seen each other at least once before then.

"Well you see… There's no way I wouldn't have noticed someone as beautiful as you if we'd passed each other before." He smirked back at her. She blushed and her smirk failed a bit as she wasn't exactly expecting this comment and for him to be so blunt. At first she looked almost happy that he'd said something like that about her but then her expression changed into one of pity and a bit of sadness.

"You- uh, I have a boyfriend…," she trailed off. She was beginning to wonder why she'd even come over. Of course… it was something neither of them could explain. That simple impulse… the tiny strings pulling them towards each other.

So the facts were set. She did indeed have a boyfriend. "The guy with the long hair from the subway?"

She paused, trying to remember if he was really there that day. Remembering that he was, she confirmed his question. "Yeah."

"Oh," his face seemed to fall, at least it looked like it to the girl because she spoke up again.

"Hey, I'm sorry." Kankuro ignored the apology. He didn't want her feeling bad for him… he wanted _her_.

"What's your name?"

"Huh?" she looked surprised that he was asking her something else instead of feeling bad or saying that it was okay. "Oh, um… Tenten."

She blushed more. He smiled at her. What a beautiful name. But then her boyfriend came out of the bathrooms, looking around for her. She… Tenten, apologized again, and then left.

_And I don't think that I'll see her again,  
But we shared a moment that will last till the end._

It'd been awhile since Kankuro had seen Tenten again. This time though he knew he'd had that conversation. A moment. Something so simple and almost stupid, but it felt wonderful every time he thought about it. Her.

_You're beautiful. You're beautiful.  
You're beautiful, it's true.  
I saw your face in a crowded place,  
And I don't know what to do,  
'Cause I'll never be with you._

This time it was a few months. No Tenten. Memories stayed though. Kankuro couldn't get rid of them even if he'd tried to. She was implanted into his brain and nothing could get her out. Kankuro wouldn't lose hope. There had to be a chance. Sure it sometimes felt that he may never see her again, but other times when the memories came strong, it felt like destiny was what created them. Cheesy, but true. That fine line, the one he knew both of them felt, was still pulling. Closer and closer. They just _had_ to end up together. His sanity was betting on it.

It was closing in on three months since he'd last seen her when Temari proposed an idea. More like commanded him to come with them, but that wasn't the point. Her and Shikamaru were going to a public dance at their city fire hall and she demanded that he come with them. He hadn't been moping exactly, but she felt, being the caring older sister she was, that something was wrong with him and she wanted to help. After all… this was technically a celebration too. Shikamaru had promised Temari, even though he still had a year and a half left of school, that they would someday get married. He was the one thing that made her soft. Their love…

Despite Kankuro saying he was fine at home, they dragged him along. Gaara had come as well –no dragging necessary- because Shikamaru was his friend. A celebration _was_ in order if he was going to be family someday. Not that Kankuro disagreed… he just didn't like formal (semi or not) dances. This one in particular required at least a collared shirt and nice pants (meaning not jeans). But… since he had no choice in the matter of whether or not he was going, he'd decided on a long sleeve, button down shirt, unbuttoned with a plain t-shirt underneath. It was semi-formal, but still casual. Enough to be comfortable through out the sure to be painful night.

Of course though… every time someone thinks something will be horrible, it ends up being wonderful. For the first twenty minutes or so it was just loud and boring, but soon it proved to be interesting. There was a tug on his shirt around the elbow and Kankuro turned to see a beautiful girl with wavy, shoulder length, dark hair, and chocolate puddles for eyes. He felt his heart strings pull and for a moment Kankuro couldn't think. Couldn't realize. Who was this girl?

"Hey," she said nonchalantly, twirling her short blue dress to the music, but just a little.

"Hi," Kankuro looked closer at her face. The suspicions in his stomach told the truth. "Tenten…"

"What are you doing here? I didn't think you were the type of guy to just drop on by a dance, formal even, just for the fun of it." She kept talking as if the last time they'd met, nothing was wrong. Still as if they were friends from forever. It was odd… but comforting. It was really simple to slide into a conversation with her. Kankuro felt his face blush slightly, but knew she probably wouldn't be able to tell in the dim lighting. He really did like her…

"You would be right," he smiled, leaning closer to her subtly.

She smiled knowingly back at him and leaned back just so slightly. "So why _are_ you here then?"

Kankuro sighed in defeat. He wasn't going to get closer, was he? "My sister got unofficially engaged and decided to drag me along for a small celebration. By now she's probably wandered off with her fiancé and into the middle of the dance floor. Or dragged him. You know, I'm not really sure if he dances… the lazy git."

Tenten giggled. A small, cheerful giggle that made Kankuro's ears tingle. It was genuinely a happy laugh and it filled him with pure bliss from head to toe. Her lips were parted just very slightly, the sound flowing out. Kankuro soon found himself wanting something. Those lips. A kiss. He leaned in before she realized what was happening, putting the lightest contact of his lips against her own. Her soft, beautiful lips. When he pulled back a few inches, he felt her nervous breath on his lips. He'd noticed that she didn't kiss him back. It… maybe hurt a little.

They pulled farther away, looking at each other. Tenten looked nervous and maybe a little scared. Like that one kiss was something that shouldn't have happened. Like she wasn't supposed to feel the way she did towards him. It wasn't right… Kankuro however, didn't regret it. From what he could see, the beautiful girl, the one of his dreams… wasn't ready for him. He'd found out the truth behind it all. That maybe she just didn't like him the way he felt toward her.

Tenten opened her mouth to say something, but an arm wrapped itself around her waste as an interruption. She turned her head slightly to see the boy with long dark hair breathing at her neck. Her boyfriend.

"Tenten, you came to dance, right? Come dance," he basically told her without asking. He started to pull her away when she just stood there, his arm getting pulled to its length before he realized that she hadn't moved.

"Neji… wait," Tenten looked at the floor almost in shame. So he hadn't seen what just happened between her and this guy? Usually he'd of punched the guy by now or something. Anything. Looking over to Kankuro, she allowed Neji to pull her along slightly. "I never got your name."

Neji looked from Tenten to Kankuro and from Kankuro back to Tenten. His face seemed slightly puzzled, but not angry. Apparently to him, this was all just a friendly talk. An exchanging of words. Kankuro coughed before calling out to her (they were getting gradually further and further away).

"Kankuro." Tenten's face grew warm, but her and Neji were whipped into the crowd before Kankuro could see it. Lost again; in the oncoming tide. The circle of life.

Kankuro wondered a bit about that feeling. The string. The one that was supposed to be pulling them together. He thought that maybe, just maybe, that if that string was pulled just a little too much, and gone through a little worse for ware… that maybe the string might just break. For it to stretch so far that that very fine line pulls apart in an instant. It was, after all, just a tiny string…

_You're beautiful. You're beautiful.  
You're beautiful, it's true.  
There must be an angel with a smile on her face,  
When she thought up that I should be with you.  
But it's time to face the truth,  
I will never be with you._

It was raining. It'd been just a few days this time. Temari had gotten mad at him for getting depressed at the dance when she was trying to celebrate a happy moment in her life. But really… she was just worried for him. One of her baby brothers. It saddened her to see him in such a state. Shikamaru had told her that he'd get over it and more chances than not, he probably wouldn't want her interfering with his adult life anyway. Still though, it didn't stop her from worrying.

Right now, Kankuro was outside. The rain was splashing on his hair and soaking his clothes, but he didn't care. It wasn't so much that he was depressed. He was just… feeling empty. Like someone had taken a chunk of part of him and taken it somewhere else. It just wouldn't feel right to be doing anything until he got that piece of him back.

The sky was dark even though it was barely noon. The clouds were a deep grey color, releasing all of its overflowing water contents on what seemed to be just Kankuro. A feeling of seclusion. The rain was in fact falling all around him, on the pavement, the grass, and the buildings. Without the part of him though, it felt like it was only him in the world. Nobody else. It was so lonely…

Kankuro's eyes were closed, his face towards the sky. The rain caught his skin for a moment before rolling down the sides of his face and away from him. He just couldn't believe it. It was over. No more. His beautiful angel. Gone.

It was then that he felt the sharp tap on the shoulder. Almost like the finger had a long, filed nail that dug into his shoulder every time it tapped. His head snapped up in answer, his eyes opened to see who it was that could possibly not see that he didn't want to be disturbed. You wouldn't believe what he saw. A pair of big chocolate puddle eyes. They were absolutely melting by now, the owner smiling at him with stretched lips.

"Hey," she said. That's how they always met. She'd say that… and if he said _it_, then everything would be normal. As if everything that'd happened the last time barely happened at all.

"Hi."

"What are you doing out here for?"

"Shouldn't I ask you that?" Kankuro asked offhand. He'd been biting his tongue, but now he couldn't hold it back. "Where's your boyfriend?"

She looked slightly hurt, but decided finally that maybe she deserved it. Looking at the ground, Tenten bite her bottom lip uncomfortably. "I… I told him that I didn't think it was going to work out."

"You, wait… what?" Kankuro was confused. What did she mean? Tenten looked up at him, staring at his eyes.

"We broke up."

"Why? What happened?" Kankuro leaned closer to Tenten, completely baffled. He was about to wrap his arm around her before he held himself back, letting his hand rest instead on her forearm gently.

"I fell in love with someone else."

"With who?" He blinked. Tenten looked at him ridiculously. Surely he wasn't this dense.

"You, baka." She blushed. A deep crimson red that spread from one ear to the other. The rain fell gentler now, touching her bangs with wet drops. Her hair was back in the two identical buns on either side of her head, but a lock of the damp hair had fallen out awkwardly. Kankuro brushed the strands out of the way, leaving his hand there to cup her face.

"Oh," he murmured softly, leaning in closer to her face. He pulled her closer with his one hand, meeting her soft lips and suddenly feeling completely and utterly whole. Every single piece finally intact. Tenten moved, but only to lean into the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck tightly as if he'd disappear again if she didn't hold onto him. So she clung, kissing him back with such passion. Kankuro kept one hand cupping her face, close to him, but the other laid at the small of her back; gently holding her back as if he too thought she might disappear again if he dare let her go. When they finally pulled back to breathe, they still hadn't lost their grip on each other. And even when they walked back to Kankuro's apartment for some dry clothes they didn't let go of one another's hands. They'd become each other's lifeline. A surprise in each other's life. Love…

So the string had never really broken. Stretched far maybe, but it didn't tear. That attraction never stopped, never failed. It kept trying, as small as it was, to pull the two strangers together. It may have been a harsh ride, a tough job, but in the end… it succeeded.

A/N: Okay. I'm so sorry I never got this finished earlier! I had a really really terrible writer's block that I didn't even know I had until I woke up today feeling really refreshed and ready to write. So apparently it'd been blocking me for a while now… I hope you liked this though! I worked really hard on it since I know I put it off for way too long. I couldn't resist sneaking ShikaTema in there… But you like that pairing, so it's okay. :) And just to make it completely clear, this fanfiction doesn't contain any Neji bashing. Not intentionally anyway. I never meant anything I said about him in a mean way. Lol, see ya later.

Lil Enchantress  
Mimi S.


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